JtomcA tAt\v\iP.pi\^y. ^tQJcd at o>iterte&ft . 



THE 



RULES AND BYLAWS 



OF THE 



OVERSEEKS OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 



TO WHICH IS APPENDED 



THE CHARTER, 

WITH SUNDRY ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



RELATING TO THE 



Sobers an* Butte* of m ©berseew. 



BOSTON: 

PRINTED BY JOHN WILSON & SON, 

22, School Street. 

1852. 



,3 



IN THE BOARD OF OVERSEERS, 

January 22, 1852. 
Ordered, That Messrs. Cushing, Wjnthrop, Wilson, 
Banks, and Walley, be a Committee to revise the Rules 
and Orders, and report thereon at an adjournment of the 
Board. 



IN THE BOARD OF OVERSEERS, 

March 4, 1852. 
Ordered, That with the Rules of this Board be printed 
all charters and provisions of law, whether now in force or 
not, which compose, define, or illustrate the constitution 
of the College, 

Attest, 

ALEXANDER YOUNG, 

Secretary 



Gift 
Edstn L. Whitney 

DEC 8- 1938 



OVERSEERS 
S5 



H HARVARD COLLEGE. 



3Sg tenure of <£fffce. 

THE GOVERNOR OF THE COMMONWEALTH. 

THE LIEUTENANT-GOVERNOR. 

THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE. 

THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTA- 
TIVES. 

THE SECRETARY OF THE BOARD OF EDUCATION. 

THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNIVERSITY. 

THE TREASURER OF THE UNIVERSITY. 

3$2 Election. 

Term of Office 
expires in 

REV. DANIEL SHARP, D.D 1853. 

„ JOSEPH FIELD, D.D „ 

,, ALEXANDER YOUNG, D.D ,, 

„ HOSEA BALLOU, 2d, D.D ,, 

„ GEORGE PUTNAM, D.D. .... „ 



4 

Term of Office 
expires in 

HON. DANIEL A. WHITE, LL.D 1853. 

,, LEMUEL SHAW, LL.D ,, 

,, JAMES T. AUSTIN, LL.D ,, 

,, JAMES SAVAGE, LL.D ,, 

„ SAMUEL H. WALLEY, A.M. ... ,, 

REV. ALONZO HILL, D.D 1854. 

,, WILLIAM P. LUNT, D.D „ 

,, SAMUEL K. LOTHROP, A.M. ... ,, 

,, WILLIAM A. STEARNS, A.M. ... ,, 

,, GEORGE E. ELLIS, A.M ,, 

HON. JACOB BIGELOW, M.D ,, 

,, EDWARD EVERETT, LL.D ,, 

,, JOHN C. GRAY, A.M ,, 

,, STEPHEN C. PHILLIPS, A.M. ... ,, 

,, GEORGE S. HILLARD, A.M. ... „ 



HON. DANIEL W. ALVORD, A.M. 
,, GEORGE N. BRIGGS, LL.D. 



1855 or 1856. 



CALEB GUSHING, A.M. 



REV. RODNEY A. MILLER, A.M. 
HON. JOHN G. PALFREY, D.D., LL.D. 
REV. JAMES PORTER, A.M. . . . 
HON. NATHANIEL B. SHURTLEFF, M.D. 
REV. ANDREW L. STONE, A.M. . . 
HON. ROBERT C. WINTHROP. LL.D. 



jj 
jj 
jj 
jj 
jj 
jj 
jj 
jj 
jj 



RULES AND BY-LAWS 



OVERSEERS OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 



I. 

A stated annual meeting of the Overseers 
shall be held at Boston on the last Thurs- 
day of January, and, with permission of the 
Senate, in the Senate Chamber. There shall 
also be a stated meeting of the whole Board 
at Cambridge, on the third Thursday of June 
in each year, for the general visitation of the 
University. Adjourned meetings may be held 
at such place and time as the Board shall 
order. Special meetings will be convened, 
upon application made to the Secretary in 
writing, by the Governor of the Common- 
wealth, by the President and Fellows, or by 
seven or more members of the Board, setting 



RULES AND BY-LAWS. 






forth the object of the meeting, its time, and 
its place, either in Cambridge or Boston. 

II. 

Notice of all meetings of the Board, whe- 
ther stated, adjourned, or special, shall be 
given by the Secretary : the notification of 
the meeting to specify its time and place ; 
and, if a special one, its object; and to be 
mailed to the address of each member at least 
seven days, and published in not less than 
two newspapers of Boston at least three days, 
before the time of the meeting. Provided, 
that in the case of a special meeting, alleged 
in the application therefor to be one of great 
urgency, notice will be sufficient if mailed 
four days before the same. And provided fur- 
ther* that the Board may, in adjourning from 
day to day, dispense with notice thereof by 
the Secretary. 

III. 

The votes and proceedings of the Overseers, 



RULES AND BY-LAWS. / 

with the names of the members present at 
each meeting, shall be recorded; and the re- 
cord shall be produced by the Secretary at 
the Overseers' meetings. At the opening of 
every meeting, the journal of the preceding 
meeting shall be read by the Secretary. 

IV. 

The Secretary shall have a list of the mem- 
bers of the Board ready to be produced at any 
meeting. He shall also acquaint the Presid- 
ing Officer, in writing, what Committees are 
subsisting which have not reported, and what 
business is by assignment to come before the 
Board. 

V. 

A quorum of not less than nine members 
of the Board shall be requisite for the trans- 
action of any business, except adjourning or 
obtaining the attendance of members. 

VI. 

There shall be laid before the Overseers at 



8 RULES AND BY-LAWS. 

the annual meeting, by the President of the 
University, a statement, authenticated by the 
Treasurer, of the expenses of the Institution 
during the past College year, 

VII. 

There shall always be presented an attested 
copy of such votes of the Corporation as are 
laid before the Overseers for their confirma- 
tion. And the Secretary shall, from time to 
time, and as soon as conveniently may be, 
deliver to the President of the University an 
attested copy of the votes of the Overseers, to 
be by him communicated to the Corporation, 



VIII. 

The Overseers will not receive any votes 
from the Corporation as to giving degrees on 
Commencement-day, but such as shall be 
ready to be presented before ten o'clock in the 
forenoon on that day; and the grounds and 
reasons of the Corporation for conferring occa- 



RULES AND BY-LAWS, \) 

sional degrees shall be laid before the Over- 
seers. 

IX, 

When the consent of the Overseers shall 
be asked to a vote of the Corporation electing 
any person to be a governor or instructor in 
the University, or conferring on any person an 
honorary degree, the decision shall be by bal- 
lot ; except in the case of Proctors, where the 
question may be taken orally or by resolu- 
tion. 

X. 

Whenever any vacancy shall occur m the 
Board of Overseers, by death, resignation, re- 
moval from the Commonwealth, or otherwise, 
notice thereof shall be given by the Secretary 
forthwith to the Governor of the Common- 
wealth, that he may communicate the same 
to the Legislature ; and in case the Legisla- 
ture shall have omitted to fill any vacancy 
within the time of three months from the day 



10 RULES AND BY-LAWS. 

of its annual meeting, as prescribed by law, 
then the Secretary shall give notice thereof to 
the Board, at the first meeting next succeed- 
ing the expiration of such three months ; and 
thereupon a nomination list shall be opened, 
upon which any member of the Board may 
write the name of any person whom he may 
wish to fill the vacancy ; and no election shall 
be made to fill it until fourteen days after 
notice of such vacancy has been given as 
aforesaid. The election shall be by ballot. 

XL 

No nomination of a member of the Cor- 
poration or of a permanent Professor shall be 
ratified by this Board, except at a meeting 
held on seven days' notice ; nor shall any such 
nomination be finally acted on at the meeting 
at which it shall have been made. 

XII. 

There shall be appointed, at every annual 
meeting of the Overseers, the following Stand- 



RULES AND BY-LAWS. 



11 



ing Committees, to be nominated by a Com- 
mittee appointed for the purpose : — 



1. A Visiting Committee, to consist of thirteen mem- 
bers, of which the Governor, the Lieutenant-Governor, 
the President of the Senate, the Speaker of the House of 
Representatives, the Secretary of the Board of Education, 
and the Secretary of the Overseers, shall be ei officio 
members ; and the remaining seven shall be chosen from 
the elective members of the Board. The duty of this 
Committee shall be to visit the University, at the Spring 
Exhibition on the first Tuesday of May, and at the Au- 
tumn Exhibition on the third Tuesday of October, and at 
such other times and in such manner as they shall judge 
best, in order to inquire into its state, and to consider 
what may tend to increase its reputation and usefulness, 
and to report at the annual meeting in the succeeding 
January, unless otherwise specially ordered by the Board. 

2. A Committee to visit the Library, the Philosophical 
Apparatus, the Medical, Chemical, and Anatomical De- 
partments, and to report at the next annual meeting : to 
consist of at least nine members. 

3. A Committee on the Treasurer's accounts, to con- 
sist of at least three members. 

4. A Committee of Examination in the Greek language. 

5. A Committee of Examination in the Latin language. 

6. A Committee of Examination in the Modern lan- 
guages. 

7. A Committee of Examination in Rhetoric, Logic, 
and Grammar. 

8. A Committee of Examination in the Mathematics 



12 



RULES AND BY-LAWS. 



9. A Committee of Examination in Intellectual and 
Moral Philosophy. 

10. A Committee of Examination in Physics. 

11. A Committee of Examination in History. 

12. A Committee of Examination in Political Economy. 

13. A Committee of Examination in Chemistry. 

14. A Committee to visit the Observatory. 

15. A Committee to visit the Divinity School. 

16. A Committee to visit the Law School. 

17. A Committee to visit the Medical School. 

18. A Committee to visit the Lawrence Scientific 
School. 

The fifteen Committees last named shall con- 
sist each of at least seven members ; and the 
Chairman of each Committee shall be a 
member of this Board. The Committees 
appointed to examine the students shall pre- 
scribe the manner, in all respects, in which 
such examinations shall be conducted; and 
shall take the control of them into their own 
hands, so far as they see fit. The Reports of 
these Committees shall be called for in the 
order in which they are named in this Rule. 

XIIL 

All Committees shall be nominated by the 



RFLES AND BY-LAWS. 



13 



Presiding Officer, excepting in those cases 
where it may be otherwise determined by the 
Overseers; and the person first named shall 
be Chairman. 

XIV. 

When any member shall require a question 
to be determined by yeas and nays, the Presi- 
dent shall take the sense of the Board in that 
manner, provided that one-fourth part of the 
members present shall be in favor of it. 

XV. 

Whenever a question shall be taken by yeas 
and nays, the Secretary shall call the names 
of all the members, except the President ; and 
no member shall be permitted to vote after 
the decision is announced from the chair. 

XVI. 

No member shall speak more than once on 
one question, to the prevention of any other 
who has not spoken, and is desirous to speak ; 



/ 



14 RULES AND BY-LAWS. 

nor more than twice without leave of the 

Board. 

XVII. 

When two or more members happen to rise jt 
at once, the President shall name the member 
who is to speak first. 

XVIII. 

Every member, when he speaks, shall stand 
in his place, and address the Presiding Officer 
as " Mr. President," and shall confine himself 
to the question under debate. 

XIX. 

No member speaking shall be interrupted 
by another, but by rising up to call to order. 

XX. 

After a question is put to vote, no member 
shall speak to it. 

XXI. 

Every motion shall be received and con- 



RULES AND BY-LAWS. 15 

sidered, and shall be reduced to writing, if the 
President direct it; and no member shall be 
permitted to lay a motion in writing on the 
table until he has read it in his place. 

XXII. 

A question containing two or more propo- 
sitions capable of division, shall be divided 
whenever desired by any member. 

XXIII. 

If any member shall rise to doubt a vote, 
upon its being declared from the chair, the 
President shall ascertain the number voting 
in the affirmative and in the negative, without 
any further debate. He may vote on all ques- 
tions, but shall not be required to do so un- 
less the Board shall be equally divided, or 
unless his vote, if given to the minority, would 
affect the result. 

XXIV. 

When a vote has passed, it shall be in order 



16 RULES AND BY-LAWS. 

for any member to move for a reconsideration 
on the same day; and when a motion for 
reconsideration is decided, that decision shall 
not be reconsidered. 

XXV. 

The rules of parliamentary proceeding, as 
received and practised in the Legislature of 
this Commonwealth, shall govern the Board 
of Overseers in all cases to which they are 
applicable, and in which they are not incon- 
sistent with the preceding Rules and Orders. 



CHARTER OF HARVARD COLLEGE, 



OTHER ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS, 



I. 

The Act establishing the Overseers oe 
Harvard College. 

At a General Court held at Boston, on the 8th of 
September, in the year 1642. 

Whereas, through the good hand of God 
upon us, there is a College founded in Cam- 
bridge, in the county of Middlesex, called 
Harvard College, for the encouragement 
whereof this Court has given the sum of four 
hundred pounds, and also the revenue of the 
ferry betwixt Charlestown and Boston, and 
that the well ordering and managing of the 
said College is of great concernment : — 



18 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

It is therefore ordered by this Court, and the 
authority thereof, that the Governor and De- 
puty Governor for the time being, and all the 
magistrates of this jurisdiction, together with 
the teaching elders of the six next adjoining 
towns, viz. Cambridge, Watertown, Charles- 
town, Boston, Roxbury, and Dorchester, and 
the President of the said College for the time 
being, shall, from time to time, have full power 
and authority to make and establish all such 
orders, statutes, and constitutions as they shall 
see necessary for the instituting, guiding, and 
furthering of the said College, and the several 
members thereof, from time to time, in piety, 
morality, and learning ; as also to dispose, 
order, and manage, to the use and behoof of 
the said College and the members thereof, all 
gifts, legacies, bequeaths, revenues, lands, and 
donations, as either have been, are, or shall be 
conferred, bestowed, or any ways shall fall or 
come to the said College. 

And whereas it may come to pass that 
many of the said magistrates and elders may 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 19 

be absent, or otherwise employed in other 
weighty affairs, when the said College may 
need their present help and counsel, — It is 
therefore ordered, that the greater number of 
magistrates and elders, which shall be present 
with the President, shall have the power of the 
whole. Provided^ that if any constitution, 
order, or orders, by them made, shall be found 
hurtful unto the said College or the members 
thereof, or to the weal public, then, upon ap- 
peal of the party or parties grieved unto the 
company of Overseers first mentioned, they 
shall repeal the said order or orders, if they 
shall see cause, at their next meeting, or stand 
accountable thereof to the next General Court. 



[This Act is copied from "The General Laws of the 
Massachusetts Colony, revised and published by order of 
the General Court in October, 1658," which was the second 
edition of the Laws of the Colony, and was printed in 1660. 
It varies slightly in phraseology from the Act contained in 
the Records of the General Court, vol. ii. page 24.] 



20 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



II. 



The Charter of the President and Fel- 
lows of Harvard College, under the 
Seal of the Colony of Massachusetts 
Bay, and bearing date, May 31, A.D. 
1650. 

"Whereas, through the good hand of God, 
many well-devoted persons have been, and 
daily are, moved and stirred up to give and be- 
stow sundry gifts, legacies, lands, and revenues, 
for the advancement of all good literature, arts, 
and sciences, in Harvard College, in Cam- 
bridge, in the county of Middlesex, and to the 
maintenance of the President and Fellows, 
and for all accommodations of buildings, and 
all other necessary provisions that may con- 
duce to the education of the English and In- 
dian youth of this country in knowledge and 
godliness : — 

It is therefore ordered and enacted by this 
Court and the authority thereof, that for the 



i 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 21 

furthering of so good a work, and for the pur- 
poses aforesaid, from henceforth that the said 
College in Cambridge, in Middlesex, in New 
England, shall be a Corporation, consisting of 
seven persons, to wit, a President, five Fellows, 
and a Treasurer or Bursar ; and that Henry 
Dunster shall be the first President, Samuel 
Mather, Samuel Danforth, Masters of Art, 
Jonathan Mitchell, Comfort Starr, and 
Samuel Eaton, Bachelors of Art, shall be the 
five Fellows, and Thomas Danforth to be 
present Treasurer, all of them being inhabi- 
tants in the Bay, and shall be the first seven 
persons of which the said Corporation shall 
consist; and that the said seven persons, or 
the greater number of them, procuring the 
presence of the Overseers of the College, and 
by their counsel and consent, shall have power, 
and are hereby authorized, at any time or 
times, to elect a new President, Fellows, or 
Treasurer, so oft, and from time to time, as 
any of the said person or persons shall die 
or be removed; which said President and 



22 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

Fellows for the time being shall for ever here- 
after, in name and fact, be one body politic 
and corporate in law, to all intents and pur- 
poses, and shall have perpetual succession, 
and shall be called by the name of President 
and Fellows of Harvard College, and shall from 
time to time be eligible as aforesaid ; and by 
that name they and their successors shall and 
may purchase and acquire to themselves, or 
take and receive upon free gift and donation, 
any lands, tenements, or hereditaments, within 
this jurisdiction of the Massachusetts, not ex- 
ceeding the value of five hundred pounds per 
annum, and any goods and sums of money 
whatsoever, to the use and behoof of the said 
President, Fellows, and scholars of the said 
College ; and also may sue and plead, or be 
sued and impleaded, by the name aforesaid, 
in all courts and places of judicature within 
the jurisdiction aforesaid. 

And that the said President, with any three 
of the Fellows, shall have power, and are here- 
by authorized, when they shall think fit, to 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 23 

make and appoint a common seal for the use 
of the said Corporation. And the President 
and Fellows, or the major part of them, from 
time to time, may meet and choose such offi- 
cers and servants for the College, and make 
such allowance to them, and them also to 
remove, and, after death or removal, to choose 
such others, and to make, from time to time, 
such orders and by-laws for the better ordering 
and carrying on the work of the College, as 
they shall think fit; provided, the said orders 
be allowed by the Overseers. And also, that 
the President and Fellows, or major part of 
them, with the Treasurer, shall have power 
to make conclusive bargains for lands and 
tenements, to be purchased by the said Cor- 
poration for valuable considerations. 

And for the better ordering of the govern- 
ment of the said College and Corporation, — 
Be it enacted by the authority aforesaid, that 
the President and three more of the Fellows 
shall and may, from time to time, upon due 
warning or notice given by the President to 



24 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

the rest, hold a meeting for the debating and 
concluding of affairs concerning the profits 
and revenues of any lands, and disposing of 
their goods (provided that all the said dispos- 
ings be according to the will of the donors), 
and for direction in all emergent occasions, 
execution of all orders and by-laws, and for the 
procuring of a general meeting of all the Over- 
seers and Society, in great and difficult cases, 
and in cases of non-agreement ; in all which 
cases aforesaid, the conclusion shall be made 
by the major part, the said President having a 
casting voice, the Overseers consenting there- 
unto. And that all the aforesaid transactions 
shall tend to and for the use and behoof of 
the President, Fellows, scholars, and officers 
of the said College, and for all accommoda- 
tions of buildings, books, and all other neces- 
sary provisions and furnitures as may be for 
the advancement and education of youth in all 
manner of good literature, arts, and sciences. 

And, further, be it ordered by this Court, 
and the authority thereof, that all the lands, 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 25 

tenements, or hereditaments, houses, or reve- 
nues, within this jurisdiction, to the aforesaid 
President or College appertaining, not exceed- 
ing the value of five hundred pounds per an- 
num, shall from henceforth be freed from all 
civil impositions, taxes, and rates ; all goods to 
the said Corporation, or to any scholars thereof, 
appertaining, shall be exempted from all man- 
ner of toll, customs, and excise whatsoever; 
and that the said President, Fellows, and 
scholars, together with the servants, and other 
necessary officers to the said President or Col- 
lege appertaining, not exceeding ten, — viz. 
three to the President and seven to the College 
belonging, — shall be exempted from all per- 
sonal civil offices, military exercises or services, 
watchings and wardings ; and such of their 
estates, not exceeding one hundred pounds a 
man, shall be free from all country taxes or 
rates whatsoever, and none others. 

In witness whereof, the Court hath caused 
the seal of the Colony to be hereunto affixed. 






26 



ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



Dated the one and thirtieth day of the third 
month, called May, anno 1650. 

[l. s.] Thomas Dudley, Governor. 

[The original Charter, engrossed on parchment, under 
the signature of Governor Dudley, with the Colony seal 
appendant, is in the custody of the President and Fellows 
of Harvard College. The Charter is also contained in the 
Records of the General Court, vol. iv. page 10.] 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 27 



III. 



An Appendix to the College Charter, 
granted by an act of the general 
Court of the Colony, passed A.D. 1657. 

At a General Court held at Boston, the 14th of 
October, 1657. 

In answer to certain proposals presented to 
this Court by the Overseers of Harvard Col- 
lege, as an Appendix to the College Charter, 
it is ordered, — 

The Corporation shall have power, from 
time to time, to make such orders and by- 
laws, for the better ordering and carrying on 
of the work of the College, as they shall see 
cause, without dependence upon the consent 
of the Overseers foregoing. Provided always, 
that the Corporation shall be responsible unto, 
and those orders and by-laws shall be alter- 
able by, the Overseers, according to their 
discretion. 



28 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

And when the Corporation shall hold a 
meeting for agreeing with College servants, 
for making of orders and by-laws, for debating 
and concluding of affairs concerning the profits 
and revenues of any lands or gifts, and the 
disposing thereof (provided that all the said 
disposals be according to the will of the do- 
nors), for managing of all emergent occasions, 
for the procuring of a general meeting of the 
Overseers and Society in great and difficult 
cases, and in cases of non-agreement, and for 
all other College affairs to them pertaining, — 
in all these cases the conclusion shall be valid, 
being made by the major part of the Corpora- 
tion, the President having a casting vote. Pr o- 
vided always, that, in these things also, they be 
responsible to the Overseers as aforesaid. 

And in case the Corporation shall see cause 
to call a meeting of the Overseers, or the Over- 
seers shall think good to meet of themselves, 
it shall be sufficient unto the validity of Col- 
lege acts, that notice be given to the Overseers 
in the six towns mentioned in the printed law, 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 29 

anno 1642, when the rest of the Overseers, by- 
reason of the remoteness of their habitations, 
cannot conveniently be acquainted therewith. 

[This Act is taken from the Records of the General 
Court, vol. iv. page 265.] 



30 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



IV. 



Extract from the Charter granted to the 
Province of Massachusetts Bay by King 
William and Queen Mary, A.D. 1691. 

Provided nevertheless, and we do for us, our 
heirs and successors, grant and ordain, that all 
and every such lands, tenements, and heredita- 
ments, and all other estates, which any person 
or persons, or bodies politic or corporate, towns, 
villages, colleges, or schools, do hold and enjoy, 
or ought to hold and enjoy, within the bounds 
aforesaid, by or under any grant or estate duly 
made or granted by any General Court for- 
merly held, or by virtue of the letters patents 
herein before recited, or by any other lawful 
right or title whatsoever, shall be by such per- 
son and persons, bodies politic and corporate, 
towns, villages, colleges, or schools, their re- 
spective heirs, successors, and assigns for ever, 
hereafter held and enjoyed, according to the 
purport and intent of such respective grant. 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 31 



Extract from a Resolve of the Provincial 
General Court, passed A.D. 1707, declar- 
ing the College Charter of 1650 not 
repealed, and directing the president 
and Fellows of the College to exercise 
the Powers granted by it. 

At a Great and General Court for her Majesty's 
Province of the Massachusetts Bay, begun and held 
at Boston, upon the 28th of May, 1707, and con- 
tinued by several prorogations unto the 29th of Oc- 
tober following, being the third session. 

in council. 

Thursday, Dec. 4, 1707. 
And inasmuch as the first foundation and 
establishment of that House [Harvard College, 
in Cambridge], and the government thereof, 
had its original from an Act of the General 
Court, made and passed in the year 1650, 
which has not been repealed or nulled, — the 
President and Fellows of the said College are 



32 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

directed, from time to time, to regulate them- 
selves according to the rules of the Constitu- 
tion by the said Act prescribed, and to exercise 
the powers and authority thereby granted for 
the government of that House, and the sup- 
port thereof. 

Saturday, Dec. 6, 1707. 
The Representatives returned the Vote 
passed in Council, the 4th current, referring 
to the College, with their concurrence there- 
unto. 

By his Excellency the Governor, consented 
to, 

Joseph Dudley. 



[This Resolve is taken from the Records of the General 
Court, vol. viii. page 344.] 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 33 



VI. 



The Articles of the Constitution oe the 
Commonwealth oe Massachusetts, con- 
firming AND SECURING TO HARVARD COL- 
lege the perpetual possession and 
enjoyment oe all its estates, rlghts, 
Powers, and Privileges. 

CHAPTER Y. 

Sect. I. — The University* 

Art. 1. — Whereas our wise and pious 
ancestors, so early as the year one thousand 
six hundred and thirty-six, laid the foundation 
of Harvard College, in which University 
many persons of great eminence have, by the 
blessing of God, been initiated in those arts 
and sciences which qualified them for public 
employments both in Church and State ; and 
whereas the encouragement of arts and sci- 
ences and all good literature tends to the 
honor of God, the advantage of the Christian 
religion, and the great benefit of this and the 
3 



34 



ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



other United States of America, — It is de- 
clared that the President and Fellows of Har- 
vard College, in their corporate capacity, and 
their successors in that capacity, their officers 
and servants, shall have, hold, use, exercise, 
and enjoy all the powers, authorities, rights, 
liberties, privileges, immunities, and franchises, 
which they now have, or are entitled to have, 
hold, use, exercise, and enjoy; and the same 
are hereby ratified and confirmed unto them, 
the said President and Fellows of Harvard 
College, and to their successors, and to their 
officers and servants respectively, for ever. 

Art. 2. — And whereas there have been at 
sundry times, by divers persons, gifts, grants, 
devises of houses, lands, tenements, goods, 
chattels, legacies, and conveyances, heretofore 
made either to Harvard College in Cambridge, 
in New England, or to the President and 
Fellows of Harvard College, or to the said 
College by some other description, under 
several charters successively, — It is declared 
that all the said gifts, grants, devises, legacies, 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 35 

and conveyances are hereby for ever confirmed 
unto the President and Fellows of Harvard 
College, and to their successors in the capacity 
aforesaid, according to the true intent and 
meaning of the donor or donors, grantor or 
grantors, devisor or devisors. 

Art. 3. — And whereas, by an Act of the 
General Court of the Colony of Massachusetts 
Bay, passed in the year one thousand six hun- 
dred and forty-two, the Governor and Deputy 
Governor for the time being, and all the 
magistrates of that jurisdiction, were, with 
the President, and a number of the clergy in 
the said Act described, constituted the Over- 
seers of Harvard College ; and it being neces- 
sary, in this new Constitution of government, 
to ascertain who shall be deemed successors 
to the said Governor, Deputy Governor, and 
magistrates, — It is declared that the Gover- 
nor, Lieutenant Governor, Council, and Senate 
of this Commonwealth, are and shall be 
deemed their successors ; who, with the Presi- 
dent of Harvard College for the time being, 



36 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

together with the ministers of the Congrega- 
tional churches in the towns of Cambridge. 
Watertown, Charlestown. Boston. Roxbury. 
and Dorchester, mentioned in the said Act. 
shall be. and hereby are. vested with all the 
powers and authority belonging or in any 
way appertaining to the Overseers of Harvard 
College. Provided, that nothing herein shall 
be construed to prevent the Legislature of 
this Commonwealth from making such altera- 
tions in the government of the said University 
as shall be conducive to its advantage and the 
interest of the republic of letters, in as full a 
manner as might have been done by the 
Legislature of the late Province of the Mas- 
sachusetts Bay. 



I _ 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 37 



VIL 

An Act to alter and amend the Constitu- 
tion of the Board of Overseers of Har- 
vard College. 

Whereas the members of the Board of Over- 
seers of Harvard College, as heretofore con- 
stituted, cannot conveniently nor constantly 
attend to the diligent discharge of the duties 
enjoined on it : — 

Sect. 1. — Be it therefore enacted by the 
Senate and House of Representatives in General 
Court assembled, and by the authority of the 
same, That the Governor, Lieutenant Go- 
vernor, Counsellors, President of the Senate, 
and Speaker of the House of Representatives 
of the Commonwealth, and the President of 
Harvard College for the time being, with fifteen 
ministers of Congregational churches, and fif- 
teen laymen, all inhabitants within the State, 
to be elected as is hereinafter mentioned, shall 



38 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

for ever hereafter constitute the Board of Over- 
seers of Harvard College ; they, or the major 
part of them present at any legal meeting, 
to exercise and enjoy all the rights, powers, 
and privileges, and to be subject to all the 
duties, of the existing Board of Overseers of 
Harvard College. Provided, however, that all 
the ministers of Congregational churches who 
are members of that Board shall remain mem- 
bers of the Boa.rd of Overseers established by 
this Act, so long as they shall continue mi- 
nisters respectively of their Congregational 
churches, and no longer. 

Sect. 2. — Be it further enacted, That as 
soon as conveniently may be, after this Act 
shall be in force, the present Secretary of the 
Board of Overseers, or, if that office be vacant, 
the President, or a major part of the Fellows 
of Harvard College, shall call a meeting of the 
Overseers of Harvard College, to be holden at 
some suitable time and place, for electing 
fifteen laymen, inhabitants of the State, to be 
members of the Board of Overseers ; the said 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 39 

meeting to be notified by publishing the time 
and place of holding the same in each of the 
public newspapers printed in Boston, ten days 
at the least before the time of holding the 
same ; and the said elections to be made by 
ballot, by the major part of the Overseers pre- 
sent ; and all persons who then, if this Act had 
not been in force, would have been members 
of the Board of Overseers of Harvard College, 
shall have right to meet and vote in the said 
elections. 

Sect. 3. — Be it further enacted, That the 
Board of Overseers, as constituted by this Act, 
may, at any legal meeting, choose by a major- 
ity of votes a Secretary, when that office shall 
be vacant, who shall be under oath truly to 
record all the votes and proceedings of the 
Board, and faithfully to discharge all the duties 
of his office ; and the said Board may, at any 
legal meeting, by a majority of votes deter- 
mine, from time to time, when and in what 
manner its meetings shall be held, called, and 
notified ; and, at any legal meeting of the said 



40 



ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



Board, the Governor, if present, shall preside ; 
if not, the Lieutenant Governor, if present, 
shall preside ; in their absence, the oldest mem- 
ber of the Council present shall preside ; if they 
also be absent, the President of the Senate 
shall preside, if present; but in his absence 
also, the Speaker of the House of Representa- 
tives shall preside ; and, if neither of them be 
present, the greater part of the Overseers pre- 
sent at such meeting shall choose a President 
pro tempore, and until one of the officers afore- 
said shall be present. Provided, nevertheless, 
that the Secretary of the Overseers shall have 
power to call a meeting of the said Board, at 
such times as he shall be thereto requested by 
the President and Fellows of Harvard Col- 
lege ; such meeting to be notified as the said 
Board shall direct. 

Sect. 4. — Be it further enacted, That when 
any minister of any Congregational church, 
being a member of the said Board, shall cease 
to have the ministerial relation he now has, or 
may have had at the time of his election, 






OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 



41 



or when any member of the elective part of 
the said Board shall remove out of the State, 
the place of such minister or member shall 
thereupon become vacant. And the said 
Board may, at any legal meeting, by a vote of 
the greater number present, remove from his 
place any member of the elective part of the 
said Board who shall neglect to attend the 
meetings thereof without reasonable excuse, 
when duly notified, or who by his immoral- 
conduct shall have rendered himself unworthy 
of holding his place ; but, before any vote shall 
pass to remove any member, he shall have 
reasonable notice, and a fit opportunity to be 
heard in his defence. 

Sect. 5. — Be it further enacted, That, for 
establishing a perpetual succession in the 
elective part of the said Board, whenever a 
vacancy shall happen therein, by death, resig- 
nation, or otherwise, the Overseers may, at 
a legal meeting, by a majority of the votes 
present, fill up such vacancy by electing there- 
for some suitable person, who shall be an in- 



42 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 

habitant of the State. Provided, however, that 
no minister of any Congregational church 
shall be so elected when there are fifteen 
ministers of Congregational churches mem- 
bers of the elective part of the said Board, 
nor shall any layman be so elected when 
there are fifteen laymen members of the elec- 
tive part of the said Board ; but, in all cases 
when there are fifteen ministers and fifteen 
laymen members of the elective part of the 
said Board, there shall not be deemed to be 
any vacancy therein. 

Sect. 6. — Be it further enacted, That this 
Act shall be in force when the Overseers of 
Harvard College, as heretofore constituted, 
and the President and Fellows of Harvard 
College, shall agree to accept the provisions 
in this Act contained. [March 6, 1810.] 

[The provisions of this Act were accepted by the Presi- 
dent and Fellows on the 16th of March, 1810, and by the 
Overseers on the 1.2th of April, in the same year.] 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 43 



VIII. 



An Act to repeal an Act entitled " An Act 
to alter and amend the constitution of 
the Board of Oyerseers of Harvard Col- 
lege, AND TO REGULATE CERTAIN MEETINGS 

of that Board." 



Sect. 1. — Be it enacted by the Senate and 
House of Representatives in General Court 
assembled, and by the authority of the same, 
That an Act made and passed the seventh 
day of March, in the year of our Lord one 
thousand eight hundred and ten, entitled " An 
Act to alter and amend the constitution of 
the Board of Overseers of Harvard College," 
be, and the same is hereby, repealed ; and the 
Board of Overseers, from and after the passing 
of this Act, shall be constituted in the same 
way and manner, and be composed of the 
same persons, and no others, that it would 



44 



ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



have been, had the same Act never been made 
or passed. 

Sect. 2. — Be it further enacted, That there 
shall be a meeting of the Board of Overseers 
of Harvard College, as the same will be con- 
stituted after the passing of this Act, on the 
second Wednesday of the first session of 
the General Court annually, in the Senate 
Chamber, at three o'clock in the afternoon, 
(unless otherwise ordered by the said Board 
of Overseers), if the General Court shall 
remain so long in session, and at such other 
times and places as the said Board shall 
order; at which annual meeting it shall be 
the duty of the Secretary of said Board, at the 
first meeting thereof, to lay before them the 
records and proceedings of the Corporation 
of Harvard College, and of the said Board of 
Overseers, which have been had since the 
passing of the Act aforesaid, which is hereby 
repealed ; and, in like manner, all the pro- 
ceedings which may have been had by said 
Corporation and Board of Overseers shall be 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 45 

laid before them at their next succeeding 
meeting, to be held agreeably to the provi- 
sions of this Act. [Feb. 29, 1812.] 

[This Act was not assented to by the Overseers, or by 
the President and Fellows, but its validity was denied 
by both Boards ; and it was repealed by the Act on the 
next page.] 



46 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



IX. 



An Act to restore the Board oe Overseers 
oe Harvard Coeeege, and to make an 
addition thereto. 

Sect. 1. — Be it enacted by the Senate and 
House of Representatives in General. Court 
assembled, and by the authority of the same, 
That an Act made and passed on the twenty- 
eighth day of February, in the year of our 
Lord one thousand eight hundred and twelve, 
entitled i; An Act to repeal an Act entitled 
•an Act to alter and amend the constitution 
of the Board of Overseers of Harvard College, 
and to regulate certain meetings of that 
Board,' " be. and the same is hereby, repealed. 

Sect. 2. — Be it further enacted. That the 
Senate of this Commonwealth shall be. and 
they hereby are. added to the Board of Over- 
seers constituted by an Act made and passed 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 47 

on the sixth day of March, in the year of our 
Lord one thousand eight hundred and ten, 
entitled " An Act to alter and amend the con- 
stitution of the Board of Overseers of Harvard 
College," and shall, together with the persons 
mentioned in tire said last-mentioned Act, 
hereafter constitute the Board of Overseers 
of Harvard College ; they, or the major part of 
them present at any legal meeting, to exercise 
and enjoy all the rights, powers, and privileges, 
and to be subject to all the duties, of the Board 
of Overseers constituted under the said last- 
mentioned Act. 

Sect. 2. — Be it further enacted, That this 
Act shall be in force when the Overseers of 
Harvard College, constituted by the last-men- 
tioned Act, and the President and Fellows of 
Harvard College, shall agree to accept the 
provisions of this Act. [Feb. 28, 1814.] 

[The provisions of this Act were accepted by the Presi- 
dent and Fellows on the 10th of March, 1814, and by the 
Overseers on the 17th of the same month.] 



48 



ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



X. 



An Act in addition to "an Act to alter 
and amend the constitution of the 
Board oe Overseers of Harvard Col- 
lege." 

Sect. 1. — Be it enacted by the Senate and 
House of Representatives in General Court 
assembled, and by the authority of the same, 
That whenever any vacancy exists in the cle- 
rical part of the Board of Overseers of Harvard 
College, the Board, in filling such vacancy, 
agreeably to the provisions of the statute of 
one thousand eight hundred and nine, chapter 
one hundred and fourteenth, may elect any 
stated minister of a church of Christ, ordained 
agreeably to the usages of the order to which 
he may belong. Provided, that when any 
minister so elected shall cease to have the 
ministerial relation he had at the time of his 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 49 

election, or shall remove out of the Common- 
wealth, the place of such minister at said 
Board shall thereupon become vacant 

Sect. 2. — Be it further enacted. That this 
Act shall be in force when the Overseers of 
Harvard College, and the President and Fel- 
lows of Harvard College, shall accept the pro- 
visions of the same. [March 28, 1834.] 

[The provisions of this Act were accepted by the Over- 
seers on the 16th of February, 1843, and by the President 
and Fellows on the 25th of the same month.! 



50 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



XL 



Ax Act to change the Organization oe the 
Board oe Overseers oe the University at 
Cambridge. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of 
Representatives in General Court assembled, 
and by the authority of the same, as follows : — 

Sect. 1. — The Board of Overseers of Har- 
vard College, as constituted by existing laws, 
shall continue until the day of the next an- 
nual meeting of the General Court, and no 
longer. 

Sect. 2. — The Governor, Lieutenant Go- 
vernor, President of the Senate, and Speaker 
of the House of Representatives of the Com- 
monwealth, the Secretary of the Board of 
Education, and the President and Treasurer 
of Harvard College, for the time being, to- 
gether with thirty other persons, as hereinafter 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 51 

defined and described, and no others, shall, on 
and after the day of the next annual meeting 
of the General Court, constitute the Board of 
Overseers of Harvard College ; they, or the 
major part of them, present at any legal 
meeting, to exercise and enjoy all the rights, 
powers, and privileges, and to be subject to 
all the duties, of the existing Board of Over- 
seers. 

Sect. 3. — The thirty persons, who, in ad- 
dition to the ex officio members thereof, now 
constitute the Board of Overseers, shall be 
divided into three classes of ten each, by lot 
or otherwise, as they themselves may deter- 
mine ; and the persons of the first class shall 
go out of office on the day of the next annual 
meeting of the General Court, and their places 
be supplied by joint ballot of the Senators 
and Representatives of the Commonwealth, 
assembled in one room ; and the persons of 
the second class shall go out of office on the 
day of the annual meeting of the General 
Court, which will be in the year one thousand 



52 



ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



eight hundred and fifty-three, and their places 
be supplied in like manner by joint ballot of 
the Senators and Representatives ; and the 
persons of the third class shall go out of office 
on the day of the annual meeting of the 
General Court, which will be in the year one 
thousand eight hundred and fifty-four, and 
their places be supplied in like manner by 
joint ballot of the Senators and Representa- 
tives. Provided, that the persons of each of 
the same outgoing classes shall continue in 
office for two months after the day of the said 
annual meeting of the General Court r unless 
their successors shall have been sooner chosen 
by the Senators and Representatives. 

Sect. 4. — When the Board of Overseers 
shall have been wholly renewed, in the man- 
ner prescribed in the foregoing section, the 
members thereof shall be divided into six 
equal classes, by subdivision of the previous 
classes into two each, according to lot or 
otherwise, as the Board may determine, and 
having regard to seniority of service among 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 53 

the said previous classes, in arranging the 
order of precedence of the new series; and 
the said six classes shall thereafter go out of 
office in rotation, and in order of precedence 
as thus defined, one at each successive annual 
meeting of the General Court, and their places 
be supplied by joint ballot of the Senators 
and Representatives. 

Sect. 5. — Any vacancy occurring in said 
Board of Overseers, whether by death, resig- 
nation, removal from the Commonwealth, or 
otherwise, shall be filled by joint ballot of the 
Senators and Representatives, as herein be- 
fore provided ; and if the General Court omit 
to fill, within three months from the day of its 
annual meeting, as aforesaid, any existing 
vacancy, then such vacancy may be filled by 
the remaining Overseers ; but the person so 
elected to fill any vacancy, whether by the 
Senators and Representatives or by the Over- 
seers, shall be deemed a member of, and go 
out of office with, the class to which his pre- 
decessor belonged. 



54 



ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS 



Sect. 6. — The Governor, if present, shall 
preside at any legal meeting of said Board of 
Overseers ; if not, the Lieutenant Governor ; 
in their absence, the President of the Sen- 
ate ; in his absence, the Speaker of the House 
of Representatives ; but if neither of the per- 
sons named be present, then the meeting shall 
elect a President pro tempore; and the said 
Board may choose by majority of votes a 
Secretary, when that office shall be vacant, 
who shall be under oath truly to record the 
votes and proceedings of the Board, and 
faithfully to discharge all the duties of his 
office ; and the said Board may make, esta- 
blish, and alter such rules of proceeding, 
and other by-laws, as they shall deem meet, 
provided that the same be not inconsistent 
with the constitution and laws of the Com- 
monwealth. 

Sect. 7. — No member of the General 
Court which elects shall be eligible to a place 
in the said Board of Overseers ; and no person 
shall be re-eligible for more than one term 



OF HARVARD COLLEGE. 55 

immediately succeeding that for which he 
shall have been first elected. 

Sect. 8. — This Act shall be in force when 
the Board of Overseers, as heretofore consti- 
tuted, and the President and Fellows of 
Harvard College, respectively, at meetings 
held for that purpose during the present 
session of the General Court, shall by vote 
have assented to the same. Ptovided, that 
nothing contained herein shall be deemed to 
prejudice any constitutional powers which 
may be possessed by the General Court. 

Sect. 9. — All Acts or parts of Acts, incon- 
sistent herewith, are repealed. 

[May 22, 1851.] 

[This Act was assented to by the President and Fellows 
on the 22d of May, 1851, and by the Overseers on the same 
day.] 



56 ACTS AND INSTRUMENTS, ETC. 



XII. 

An Act explanatory of the Acts relating 
to the Organization oe the Board of 
Overseers oe the University at Cam- 
bridge. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of 
Representatives in General Court assembled, 
and by the authority of the same, as follows : — 

Sect. 1. — The several Acts relating to the 
organization of the Board of Overseers of 
Harvard College shall be so construed as to 
empower the said Board to order and provide, 
by rule or by-law, what number of the mem- 
bers thereof, not less than nine, shall consti- 
tute a quorum or legal meeting of the same. 

Sect. 2. — This Act shall take effect from 
and after its passage. [March 3, 1852.] 



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